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A system and method particularly suited for the re-charging of portable
devices includes a charger having a charge port adapted for wired,
contact, or contactless re-charging. Although the charger could be wired
for connection to an electrical outlet, the charger is preferably
wireless, and is either solar powered, or it can operate on batteries or
fuel cells. The charger can be enabled/disabled by a payment unit
depending on whether or not payment has been received from a user, and
whether the amount paid is sufficient. The payment unit permits the
charger to provide a charge for a predetermined amount so that the user
can contactlessly recharge a device within a predetermined distance of
the charge port. The type of device to be recharged and amount of
recharge desired can be selected by a user directly, or after receiving a
recommendation regarding the optimal/typical amount of recharge to be
provided. A wireless charging unit permits recharging of the power source
of a device in unconventional locations.

1. A system for the re-charging of portable devices, comprising: a charger
having a charge port adapted for recharging a power source of a device;
said charger including an enable/disable switch in connection therewith;
a payment unit for receiving payment from a user; wherein said payment
unit enables the enable/disable switch after receiving payment to permit
the charger to provide a charge for a predetermined amount so that the
user can recharge the device.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the charger comprises a
wireless charger that is a solar powered.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the charger is powered by one
of batteries and fuel cells.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the charge port is adapted for
contactless recharging of the power source of the device within a
predetermined distance of the charge port.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the charger contactlessly
recharges the power source of the device by inductance.

6. The system according to claim 4, wherein the charger contactlessly
recharges the power source by capacitance.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the charger recharges the
power source ohmically.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the payment unit includes a
card reader for reading at least one of a credit card, smart card, and
debit card.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the payment unit includes a
keypad for entry of payment/user information, and a display screen to
prompt the user and display entries typed by the keypad.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system further includes a
service provider for retrieving payment in communication with the payment
unit.

11 The system according to claim 10, wherein the payment unit and the
service provider communicate via the Internet.

12. The system according to claim 10, wherein the payment unit and the
service provider communicate via one of a local area network and a wide
area network.

13. The system according to claim 10, wherein the payment unit
communicates with an end user's account to directly debit payment.

14. The system according to claim 4, wherein the payment unit includes a
keypad for entry of payment/user information, and a display screen to
prompt the user and display entries typed by the keypad; and wherein the
charger displays on the screen an approximate distance that the device to
be recharged is to be placed from the charge port to optimize recharging
of the device.

15. The system according to claim 9, wherein the display screen of the
charger prompts the user to select the type of device to be recharged.

16. The system according to claim 9, wherein the display screen of the
charger prompts the user to select the amount of recharged desired.

17. The system according to claim 16, wherein the amount of recharge to be
provided is specified in one of a monetary amount and a time selected by
the user.

18. The system according to claim 16, wherein the amount of recharge to be
provided is specified in milliwatt hours.

19. The system according to claim 16, wherein the charger includes
recommended recharging amounts that are displayed on the screen in
response to a user selecting the type of device to be recharged.

20. The system according to claim 14, further comprising a template marked
with distances to guide the user to place the device within the optimal
distance for recharging.

21. A method for recharging of portable devices, comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a charger having a charge port adapted for recharging a
power source of a device; (b) receiving payment from a user by a payment
unit to recharge a device; (c) enabling the charger to permit recharging
of the power source of the device commensurate with the amount of payment
received by the payment unit.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein step (a) further includes:
(i) prompting a user to identify a type of device to be recharged; and
(ii) providing a user with a recommended charging amount dependent on the
type of device identified in sub-step (a)(i).

23. The method according to claim 21, wherein step (a) further includes:
(i) prompting a user to identify a charge status of batteries used by the
device; and (ii) providing a user with a recommended charging amount
based on a charge status of batteries in the device.

24. The method according to claim 21, wherein step (a) further includes:
(i) prompting a user to enter a desired amount of recharging.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein the amount of recharging is
requested as one of: (1) time; and (2) milli/microwatt hours.

26. The method according to claim 21, wherein step (b) further comprises
verifying with a service provider that a payment entered by a user is
valid.

27. The method according to claim 26, wherein the service provider is
remotely situated and communicated with via the Internet.

28. The method according to claim 21, wherein the payment received is one
of credit card, smart card and debit card.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention is related to wireless power transfer
systems. More particularly, the present invention is related to systems
to charging to devices with a compensation component to the providers of
such systems.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The number and type of portable electrical devices and electronic
devices in use today is growing at a faster pace than ever. Many of these
devices include batteries, in order for the device to be used without
attachment to a power cord or wall socket. It is more and more common
that rechargeable batteries are used so that the expense of battery
replacement and the sometimes cumbersome task of opening these devices to
replace the batteries are reduced. Thus, the devices must be recharged,
which can be difficult to accomplish in a portable device, for example,
when someone is traveling, and lacks the ability to plug-in a charger.
Sometimes, although a charging cord could be run to the device, it still
might be considered inconvenient to do so.

[0003] Some examples of such portable electronic devices include cellular
telephones, tape recorders, compact disc players, computers, personal
data assistants (PDA), hand-held video games, telemetry equipment,
two-way radio, and wearable fabrics that have electronic wiring woven
into to the fabric itself, such as coils formed in any arbitrary shape to
facilitate woven wire arranged in the fabric, or pads with embedded
conductors that can be attached to clothes.

[0004] Wireless power transfer has been used in applications such as the
non-intrusive charging of pacemaker batteries, the charging of hybrid
vehicle batteries, etc. In such applications, inductive coupling is used
exclusively so that a current is induced from a power station to a load.
In such systems, the power transfer is exclusively accomplished by means
of coupling magnetic flux of the power station and the load.

[0005] U.S. Pat. No. 5,608,771 to Steigerwald et al. discloses a
contactless power transfer system, wherein power is transferred from a
stationary supply to a rotational load via the use of a rotary
transformer. The coupling in this type of system is also inductive.
Another arrangement is the use of a clamp-on link around a primary
conductor that does not physically contact the conductor. The transfer of
power is still via induction.

[0006] In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/170,034, filed Jun. 12,
2002, the instant inventor provided a wireless charger to recharge
portable devices, eliminating the hurdle of trying to find an outlet and
a cord to recharge such devices. Moreover, there are times when a wall
connected outlet is not desirable for safety reasons, for example, to
prevent electrical shock in a kitchen or bathroom.

[0007] However, the proliferation of such wireless charging device's begs
the question of how will this wireless charging be paid for?

[0008] One answer is to include a payment unit/mechanism as either an
additional part of the charging system or as an add-on. A credit card
reader or other form of payment mechanism can be placed and coupled to a
charging device. Once payment is made, the mechanism enables the charge
transfer from wireless charger to the "to-be charged" device.

[0009] The registration of payment can be stored in the payment mechanism
for later retrieval, or can be connected via wired or wireless to a
payment center and/or the Internet and only periodically carry out the
completion of the financial transaction.

[0010] An advantage of the present invention is that it facilitates the
use of wearable electronics. For example, flexible materials (such as
FR4), and flex circuits used in wearable electronics, so that, for
example, one could charge a radio, cellphone, and/or computer (just to
name a few of the many wearable items) by bringing the device in close
proximity to the fabric, and be charged for receiving the service.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing one aspect of the present invention.

[0012] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of another aspect of the present
invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] The following description is provided for purposes of illustration,
and not for limitation. There are many different configurations that are
well within the spirit of the invention, and the scope of the appended
claims.

[0014] FIG. 1. illustrates one of the various aspects of the present
invention. A charger 110, has a charge port 120 for charging of a device
125. The type of re-charging of a device could be, for example,
inductive, capacitive or ohmic. The charger itself could be a "wired"
charger, meaning that it connects to an electrical outlet, or it could be
a charger that runs on batteries, such as lithium ion, nickel hydride,
alkaline, just to name a few of the many possible battery types.
Preferably, the charger would be a solar powered charger, so that it
could be placed virtually anywhere without the need to hard wire an
electrical connection. The charger will, of course, have a charging
circuit commensurate with whether the charging is by alternating current
or direct current.

[0015] The charger 110 may or may not have an intermediate storage
facility to hold/store charge when a device is not being recharged, or
the amount of power to recharge the device is less than the output of the
batteries/charging circuit.

[0016] It is possible that the charge port 120 optionally includes a port
for wire charging (by contact), for example, when wireless charging is
not practical, or the contactless charging might take too long as
compared with the wired charging.

[0017] It is envisioned that the charger 110 would be enabled by a payment
device 130, which, for example, could be a card reader that reads smart
cards, debit cards, credit cards, check cards, the optical characters
encoded on the bottom of a check, etc. Moreover, there are systems in use
today in which a cell phone can be used to make purchases of, for
example, soda from a vending machine.

[0018] Such systems can be employed in the device to be charged a credit
card.

[0019] The service provider 140 could then retrieve payment from the end
user's account 145 and notify the user 132 that a payment was deducted.
The connection from the payment device to the Service Provider 140 could
be by any of copper wire, Lan, Wan, Internet, fiber optic, wireless, etc.
The payment device may be in communication with the end user account via
the Internet, wired, or wireless, but in a best mode, it is envisioned
that a service provider 140 would act as a go-between the payment device
130 and the end user account 145.

[0020] FIG. 2 shows one embodiment of a contact charger having a payment
device in communication therewith. Applicants note that these drawings
are submitted for purposes of illustration, not for limitation, and there
are many variations of the present invention that can be practiced within
the spirit of the appended claims. The charger 110 is configured in the
form of a flat pad 112 that provides a common mounting and encasing for
solar cells 118.

[0021] It should be noted that the cells could be fuel cells as well. The
solar cell 118 is exposed to light impinging on the pad 112. The top
surface of the pad 115 includes charging ports 113, 114 hold the device
to be charged 125 in an orientation to bring the primary transformer
winding of the charger 110 into proximity with the secondary transformer
windings in the device to be charged (if, for example, the device is a
cell-phone or pager), so that, for example, the costs to recharge are
incurred by the telephone user. Furthermore, a capacitive coupling, for
example, such in the EZ Pass wireless toll collection system, or the
SmartPass toll collection system, could be used to identify the account
of the device to be recharged, and a recharging fee could be incurred to
the device's online account.

[0022] However, if the payment system uses a smart card, debit card,
credit card, etc., etc., there would need to be a link to a Service
Provider 140 of, for example Visa card accounts, American Express card
accounts. The link to the service provider 140, could be made by fiber
optic cable, telephone cable, T1, wireless Lan, Wan connections, or other
types of wired and wireless connections.

[0023] Upon verification, for example, of a user's credit card number, the
charge port can be enabled to supply charge to the device 125.

[0024] Alternatively, the user's payment information could be held in the
payment device or a storage area and only updated periodically. In such
cases, the charger could default to an enabled status to permit charging,
and user verification and/or payment would not occur until after the end
user 132 finished charging his device 125. It is even possible that the
user would enter some type of access code and a verification number in
lieu of 125, so that its batteries may be charged through magnetic
induction. There is also an optional fuel port 119 if the charger 110
uses a fuel cell. The charger 110 is preferably solar powered, via solar
cell 118. The solar cell could also be positioned in another area,
according to desire.

[0025] The payment device 130 in this particular case has an LCD display
131, a series of buttons 132, and a slot, for swiping a credit card. The
payment device could connect with a service provider via Internet, wired,
wireless, fiber optic, etc. Also, the payment device could be connected
to an electrical outlet, as well as the charger. If the charger uses
electricity from a standard outlet, then there would be no need for solar
cells. However the device would tend to lose some of its convenience in
that it can be used anywhere outdoors.

[0026] The display screen 131 (which is described as an LCD screen but can
be any type of screen known, so long as it can display characters in a
given language) may also display prompts that ask the user the type of
the device, the status of the batteries, etc. and provide a recommended
recharging amount based on the prompted information. In the case of
contactless charging, the display may tell the user a recommended
distance to arrange the device near the charging port, and a template 117
may be provided so that the user has a guide regarding the recommended
distance.

[0027] Inside the payment device 130, there is an interface (e.g. 1394,
RS-232, LPT1, etc.) so that the payment device can communicate with the
charger. The enablement of the charger can be by hardware (enable/disable
switch 121), firmware, software, or any combination between the payment
device and the charger. The payment device, for example, could set a
latch in the charger that permits charging.

[0028] The amount charged to the user can be set up according to need, in
time (e.g. second) amount of power used (e.g. microwatt hours or
milliwatt hours), or even according to the type of device being
recharged. The buttons on the keyboard 131,132, could be used to select
the type of device being charged. The strength of the recharging could
also be based on the type of device 125 to be charged.

[0029] With regard to a method, a user with a portable device suited for
re-charging can be prompted to select the type of device to be recharged,
or to merely enter the amount of money that is desired to be spent on
recharging. After a payment unit receives payment (and may verify with a
service provider, particularly if payment is made by a credit or debit
card rather than a "smart" card), the user will be prompted to place the
device within a certain proximity of the charging port. Once the charging
is complete, the user may be signified that the charging process has
ended.

[0030] It should be noted that while the system for monetary payment for
recharging portable electric or electronic devices is beneficial no
matter whether the device to be recharged (and the charge port of the
charger) are wired, use contacts (such as a cordless telephone and its
charger), or are contactlessly recharged.

[0031] While is it preferable that the charger itself is a solar-powered
charger, it is within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the
appended claims to have a charger that is powered by batteries, fuel
cells, or wired to an outlet. The time needed to recharge a device would
in all likelihood be faster than a contact/wired recharge than a
contactless recharging system, but a wired recharging system requires
cables that can plug into the device to be recharged.